


In and Out of Love

by ScribbledGhost



Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Declarations Of Love, Developing Relationship, F/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-19 06:06:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29870280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScribbledGhost/pseuds/ScribbledGhost
Summary: It's no secret to you that you crave love. You've chased it for so long, but it isn't until a strange Mandalorian takes you along on his journey through the galaxy that it happens to find you instead.4.1k words of Din fluff inspired by the song "In and Out of Love" by Oh Wonder! A birthday gift for LittleFeral on Tumblr.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Reader
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	In and Out of Love

Mando was not a man that most would consider “gentle” or even “kind” in most cases. He was a Mandalorian through and through, focused on hunting his bounties and getting his pay in return. Mando had did his job, and he did it well, sending funds back to his covert whenever he had the chance and profits to spare. He’d had little time or desire to focus on such trivial things as settling down or finding love. 

Then there was you.

You wanted love. Craved it, even. But it always seemed to fall through, most of the time through no fault of your own. It was simply the wrong place, the wrong time, the wrong life. You sought it out frequently, always trying so hard to find someone who could give you the same love in return that you gave them. Some would, for a time. Then they’d move on to other ventures. Other times, it was you who moved on. But either way, parting was not something that was uncommon to you, despite how much you wished for the opposite.

You were alone in your local cantina when you’d first spotted him. Of course, you were hardly the only one to notice him; Mando commanded the space around him wherever he went, either with his words or with his silent stride. Mandalorians weren’t exactly common around your area, so naturally he’d turned a lot of heads when he’d walked in. 

The aura that surrounded him drew you to him, for reasons you couldn’t quite explain. It wasn’t fear, or intimidation, as so many of the other patrons felt when looking at him. No, it was… intrigue? Curiosity? You couldn’t quite place your finger on it, but you found yourself going up to sit next to him at the bar, anyway. You didn’t even attempt to make conversation at first, knowing full well that someone with as commanding of a presence as him would likely not take well to sudden prying. No, instead you simply sat next to him, and silently paid his tab for him when he was done, earning you a quiet “thank you” in response before he left to attend to his duties.

It was in a voice instantly enraptured you.

Over the next few days, the two of you settled into what could have been considered a routine. He would come into the cantina, sit at the bar, and you’d come sit next to him. Other times, you’d already be there, and he’d take the seat next to yours. It took several days, but you were finally able to have a small conversation with him about what had brought him there and if he was having any luck. He spared you the details, telling you he was only after an arms dealer that had a hefty price on him, and that he had a fairly good idea of his whereabouts, but hadn’t been able to get a chance to get him alone yet. Ever the gentleman, Mando hadn’t wanted to cause that big of a fuss in snagging his target. 

So you came up with a plan to help him. You knew the target he was referring to. Nearly everyone in town did. He’d shown up around six months ago and completely upended your usual way of life, and you knew that there wouldn’t be many souls in the place that would miss him. So that evening, when you knew he’d be visiting one of his usual haunts, you tried talking to him. Allowing him to get far closer than you were comfortable with someone like him getting, but doing it as a means to an end. You’d spotted Mando up on a ridge not too far away, so you knew he’d be watching when you lured the dealer out into the desert in the dark of night under the guise of going somewhere more private.

Your hunch turned out to be correct, and when the two of you had gotten out of earshot of the safehouse he’d been in, Mando struck. He’d come up behind the dealer, quickly disabling him and knocking him out cold before attaching his cuffs around his wrists. 

“What was that?” Mando asked in a somewhat gruff tone as he let the dealer fall to the ground with a thud.

“I was helping you,” you said, crossing your arms, “ _That’s_ what that was.”

“I didn’t ask you to do that,” he responded.

“Didn’t need to,” you stated simply, “I wanted to.”

“You could have gotten hurt. Or worse.”

“I’m aware. I was hoping you’d give me something in return.”

“Like what?” Mando asked, a wary tone lacing his voice.

“Take me with you when you leave,” you asked, your tone becoming less sure by the second. When he only offered you a confused tilt of his helmet, you continued with your reasoning.

“There’s nothing here, Mando,” you said, “There’s no life for me here. At least out there, somewhere, maybe I could do some good. Maybe I could find something.”

_Maybe I could find some **one**_ , the voice in your head continued, though you kept that bit to yourself. 

Mando stayed silent for a while, as if contemplating his options. You tried not to focus on how ridiculous the scene must have looked - you pleading with this nearly-unknown Mandalorian to steal you away across the galaxy, him quietly pondering his options, and an unconscious body of an inter-planetary arms dealer between the two of you.

“Fine,” he eventually said with a sigh, “But don’t be a liability.”

You only nodded in response, as if to say _of course_ , before helping Mando lift the unconscious dealer and carry him back to the Razor Crest for processing. Along the way, you considered how this armored bounty hunter had seemingly come into your life like a live stick of dynamite, lit up in just the right way to ignite your own spark into your own personal hand grenade. You could hardly contain your excitement at the countless new adventures that surely awaited you.

————– 

And adventures you had. You’d spent months with Mando, touring around the galaxy and helping him on bounties when you could, or helping him around the Crest when you couldn’t. He’d introduced you to the Child, a little peculiar green creature that immediately took a shine to and apparently designated you as his personal babysitter and entertainment whenever Mando wasn’t readily available. All in all, it was a beautiful change from your old life.

You learned about Mando in bits and pieces. Learned about Mandalorian culture, learned about his values, learned about his thoughts. Most of your conversations occurred either when the ship was in a hyperspace jump, or in the dark belly of the Crest when the child had been safely nestled into his pod for the evening. You told Mando about yourself in return, and over time you felt the atmosphere between the two of you shift from a tentative, guarded agreement to an easy, light companionship.

You found yourself joking and getting along with Mando far more than you originally thought you would have. Over time, you found yourself wondering what it would be like to simply… stay there with him. Wandering around the galaxy with him, with someone that you, truthfully, had no desire to part from. You slowly came to the realization that you’d let your feelings develop into something far deeper than intrigue and curiosity. And you began to notice changes behind the armor that led you to think that perhaps his feelings had changed, too.

It first started with Mando getting more protective whenever you were outside of the ship on a hunt with him. He’d go to great lengths to make sure you always walked in front of him, no doubt so he could keep an eye on you. He’d also insist on handling the more dangerous part of any job on his own, even though one would think those would be the instances where he’d need the most help. It was only small things, but those small things got stitched together to weave a picture that made you wonder what you were really seeing.

But there had been on instance that had changed everything.

It was supposed to have been an easy job. Fairly secluded, the target likely not armed, and in a quiet area. It should have been as simple as a regular snatch-and-go. But it wasn’t. Instead, just when the two of you thought you had the target secured, an entire band of henchmen came out of the trees, sprinting for you before hauling you off while another group distracted Mando. The group had taken you to a shack in the middle of nowhere, no doubt to be used as a bargaining chip for their leader. They held you there for a few days, waiting for Mando to track you down. They didn’t harm you, didn’t even touch you beyond tying you to a chair and leaving you there. 

On the dawn of the third day, you’d awoken to the sound of splintering wood and pained cries. Not only had Mando tracked you to the shack, but he’d destroyed the entire front wall to do it. 

His rescue had been swift and quiet, and he hadn’t bothered leaving any survivors, opting to take the original target in cold as a means of revenge. He’d been ruthless, not affording any of your captors any mercy, but when he finally made his way to you, he’d been nothing but gentle. He’d untied the ropes before gingerly taking your hands and helping you stand so he could survey any damage. Thankfully there had been none aside from some bruising and rope burns, but he’d still kept an arm around your shoulders on the walk back to the Crest as he dragged his target behind him.

When the two of you had gotten settled back on the ship, he’d beckoned to you again, swiveling his pilot chair to have you stand in front of him between his legs. He checked you over again, wanting to make extra sure there was no lasting damage done.

“Mando, I’m _fine_ ,” you responded softly, putting a hand on the side of his helmet. He stopped for a moment, before tilting his visor and his gaze to meet yours as his hands fell to your hips.

“…My name is Din,” he said softly, “You don’t have to call me Mando.”

You nodded, slightly stunned that he’d give you something so sacred as his name. You let your hands rest on his shoulders, leaning into his space ever so slightly. You touched your forehead to his helmet, an action that he had explained a while ago as the equivalent of a kiss to Mandalorians. He didn’t try to move away.

“…Din,” you repeated quietly, as if to truly bask in how the word tasted on your tongue. It was the sweetest taste you’d ever experienced.

————–

To say things changed between the two of you after that wouldn’t exactly be an incorrect statement. Mando - _Din_ \- was still just as protective of you as before, if not more so. For more than a few jobs after your incident, he’d go off on his own, leaving you on the Crest with the child. Not that you minded, you were more than content to entertain the toddler as opposed to risking your life again, at least for a time. Din would finish his job, then come back to the Crest, immediately coming to find you upon his return. As if he were trying to instantly make sure you were still here.

You began to notice a lot more casual touches between the two of you. In fact, it became quite common for Din to walk around the Crest without his beskar on, leaving only his helmet, his gloves, and his fabric underlayer. You were still unable to see any skin, but it was far more intimate than a full set of armored plates. There were more than a few occasions in which you’d fall asleep in the passenger’s chair in the cockpit during late night talks after the child had been put to bed, and you’d wake up with Din’s cape gently placed atop you. He was not a man of many words, but Din always managed to convey how he felt just fine without them.

Slowly but surely, you found yourself realizing how much of a home you’d found with Din and the child. You’d been so used to spending so many nights on repeat trying to find the right person for you, and somehow you’d managed to find them without much trying at all. Din was someone you always felt safe and secure with, and you never doubted how he felt, even if he rarely said so out loud. It wasn’t long after telling you his name that Din surprised you with an unexpected upgrade to the Crest - expanding the sleeping area so the two of you could sleep side-by-side if you so wished. As if he needed to ask you twice. Many nights found the two of you curled into each other, Din still leaving his helmet and gloves on but still wrapping his arms around you to pull you into his warmth.

One morning, when the lights were low and the child was still asleep, the two of you were in your bunk, side by side and facing each other, talking lowly to each other when Din’s hand ceased in its movements where he’d had it trailing along your bare arm. He went quiet and pensive for a moment before pulling his hand back and slowly removing the leather glove from his hand. You said nothing through the exchange, focusing on the tanned, scarred skin that was slowly revealed to you. You could feel Din’s eyes on you as he slowly returned his hand, bare this time, to your arm.

His skin was warm, if slightly rough, and he was exceedingly gentle as he continued to run it up and down your arm. You intrinsically knew what kind of step had just been taken between the two of you, knew the deep importance that Din placed in showing anyone any bit of skin. After a time, you gently grabbed his hand. He startled a bit, almost flinching away as if he thought you were going to reject him. But instead, you tentatively brought his hand up to your lips, placing a soft kiss to his knuckles. In return, Din placed his hand on your cheek, tilting your head forward slightly so he could press the forehead of his helmet against yours.

It was little moments like those that truly cemented in your mind that you were meant to be there, and meant to be with Din. Through highs and lows, you were there and so was he. Every time he would come back battered and bruised from yet another fight, you were there to patch him up. Every time you doubted yourself, he was there with soft hands and softer words. Being with Din was unlike anything else you’d ever experienced, and you thanked the stars that you’d gotten up the nerve to ask him to take you with him that night that felt like it was so long ago. 

One day, Din woke you up with a gentle shake of your shoulder, soothing you when you’d nearly jumped out of the bunk in a panic as you thought there was an emergency.

“Easy, _cyare_ ,” Din said softly, “It’s okay. I just wanted to let you know we’re here. Figured I’d try and get some alone time with you before the kid woke up.”

“Here… _where_?” you asked, sleep still lacing your cognitive abilities.

“Come on,” Din said, extending his bare hand to you, “I’ll show you.”

You took his hand, not registering that he had no beskar or gloves on and was apparently making to leave the ship, and let him lead you to the bay door. As it opened, you gasped as you were met with one of the most luscious green landscapes that you’d ever seen. Far off, just above the horizon, two suns had begun their ascent into the sky. It seemed like the entire planet was nothing but green, densely packed with all sorts of flora that you’d never seen before.

“Din, it’s…” you trailed off before finding your voice again, “it’s beautiful.”

“I was hoping you’d like it,” he said, an undercurrent of relief in his voice, “scans say it’s totally uninhabited, so I figured it would be a nice place to maybe lay low for a couple days.”

“I love it,” you said, intertwining your fingers with his. You felt his thumb lightly brush along the skin of your hand, and you could feel his gaze on you as you looked out.

The silence spread between the two of you was not uncomfortable. Silence with Din never really was. You both stood just outside of the Crest, basking in the rising sunlight as you felt Din slip his hand from yours only to put it around your waist and pill you to his side. As you reached over and did the same to him, your fingers gently slid underneath his tunic to rest on the warm skin there. You knew Din adored the casual intimacy of just resting one’s hand on someone’s skin, just to feel the warmth and life beneath your fingertips.

You turned your head to gaze at Din’s profile, and upon feeling your eyes on him, he turned to face you as well. It wasn’t long before he tilted his helmet forward to rest his forehead upon yours, a practiced action that the two of you had done hundreds of times before. Your eyes slipped closed as Din pulled you into an embrace, the two of you standing in the same position for what felt like eons. 

At least, until you heard the tiny squeaks and coos coming from the Crest, signaling that the child was awake.

“Go,” you said with a light chuckle as Din pulled away, “get your son out of bed.”

Din did as you instructed, disappearing into the ship before you turned back around to finish watching the suns rise. You sat down on the plush grass, crossing your legs and pondering where your life had gone since that one fateful evening. You realized that, without Din having come along, you would have likely always been in and out of love, always chasing forever but never really managing to grasp it. You’d spend so much of your time lying in the wrong rooms with the wrong people, a never-ending cycle that would never be quite enough to satisfy you. 

But with Din? With Din, you never even had to think about whether or not he was right or good for you. He just was, without question and without hesitation. He’d made it clear time and time again that he would go to the ends of the galaxy to make sure you stayed safe, and you would do the exact same to make sure he was happy. The two of you needed the other, just as the trees on this sprawling green planet needed the two suns in the sky. Sure, you would be able to last without the other, but you’d never flourish in quite the same way.

Eventually you were stirred out of your reverie by a pair of small hands on your arm, coupled with the usual happy noises you’d grown accustomed to from the child. Din followed close behind, sitting next to you in the grass while you put the child on your lap to continue looking out over the space before you.

The three of you spent the day in relaxation, only really moving to either lie back against the grass or lightly play with the child whenever he got restless. There was one point when the child had settled in for a nap sometime around mid-afternoon, and you had cradled him in your arms as you and Din both laid back, his arm supporting your head as you cuddled into his side for your own nap. 

As the day faded into evening, the sky began to set alight with vivid reds, oranges, and purples. Though you couldn’t see the suns, and you were comfortably shaded by the shadow of the Crest, you still couldn’t help but marvel at the sight in front of you. The sky turned from light to dark, and as trillions of stars lit up the dark expanse, Din gently took the child’s now-sleeping form from you to place him back in his pod inside the ship for the night. The three of you had done absolutely nothing that day, and it was a blissful realization to have.

You heard Din’s footsteps descend down the entrance ramp to you once again, but this time, instead of sitting beside you, he sat behind you, moving himself so you were between his legs and his arms were wrapped around you as his chin sat atop your shoulder. The two of you sat there in silence for a time, basking in the warmth of each other against the slightly chilled night. 

“Can I tell you something, _cyare_?” Din asked softly into the dark.

“Of course,” you responded, your hands coming to rest over his as they laid on your stomach. Din was quiet for a time before speaking again, as if trying to get his courage up enough to say what he wanted to.

“I love you.”

It was a simple declaration, yet more profound than anything you had ever heard before. A smile bloomed on your face as you turned your head to nudge it against Din’s as you returned his feelings in kind. He then moved his hands, shifting you so you were turned to face him as you sat across from him.

“This…” he started, as if he were unsure of what he was really trying to say, “this isn’t exactly the most desirable circumstance for this, but… I’d like to let you see my face. Typically I would only be able to show my face to the one I marry, but… it just feels like the right time. Right now.”

Your eyes widened as you processed what he was telling you. You’d known about his creed since the beginning, and had known how sacred his visage was to him. Far more sacred than even his name, which had taken him months to give you to begin with. You wanted to ask him if he knew what he was really doing, ask him if this was really what he wanted. But you knew that he’d likely thought about this moment for days, if not weeks. So you only offered him a nod, tentatively waiting for him to remove his helmet on his own so as not to intrude on his moment.

Din gave you a small nod, and with shaky hands, reached upwards for his helmet. He placed his hands on the side, keeping there for a moment as if to steady himself and prepare himself for what he was getting ready to do. Then you heard the slight hiss of the seal breaking, and closed your eyes as his helmet slid off.

When you opened them again, you were met by the most beautiful sight you’d ever seen in all your days.

Din was looking at you, worry plainly gracing his features. Dark hair fell against his forehead in waves, his brown eyes almost black in the dark of night. Before you knew it, your hands were on his cheeks, pulling his lips to yours. It was an almost hurried, rushed experience, a result of you wanting to pour out your emotions and feelings to him but being completely unable to find the words in such an intimate moment. After your lips parted, you rested your forehead against his, holding the same position as you saw a shine in his eyes.

“Thank you,my love,” he said, “thank you for waiting for me.”

“Din,” you said softly, “before you came along, I was always in and out of love. Never finding anything worth staying for. But now… even if I’d never seen your face, I would have always been waiting for you. Whether I knew it or not.”

The way Din looked at you told you that not only did he understand, but he felt the same way you did. The pair of you had been looking for the other, like tiny sparks of light in the dark, drawn together by the universe itself to create the warm, beautiful flame you were now graced with.


End file.
